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To a medieval Japanese warrior, Kabura described the first arrow launched into battle: a whistling missive that boldly proclaimed the arrival of a new force to be reckoned with. To a modern Japanese car manufacturer like Mazda, it’s an equally dramatic precursor–albeit to different kind of confrontation. Although still cloaked in a mantle of high concept, this revolutionary sport coupe lays some very real groundwork for the look and feel of a future that could be here sooner than you think.

Prime responsibility for the Kabura was entrusted to Franz von Holzhausen, who took over as chief of design for Mazda North American Operations in February 2005. Working with the firm’s international design director, Moray Callum, the youthful but well-credentialed von Holzhausen and his crew of some 50 artisans in Irvine, California, crystalized what began as the “Concept Sport Coupe” into a reality-based vehicle that would appeal to Gen-Y buyers while maintaining legitimate production potential. Von Holzhausen’s first effort proved a bona-fide star of this year’s North American International Auto Show in Detroit, wowing attendees in its debut outing and earning the prestigious Eyes on Design Award for Aesthetics and Innovation from a panel of top international auto designers.

Riding on a 100.4-inch wheelbase, the Kabura is scaled midway between the MX-5 and RX-8. According to its chief architect, the look provides “an idea of where Mazda design probably will go for our sporty, lower-volume vehicles.”

Although the Kabura takes existing corporate cues to a new plateau, its seamless integration of fluid contours and sheer surfaces yields a cohesive whole that remains immediately recognizable as a Mazda. Its profile is punctuated by short overhangs, bold wheel arches filled with 245/35 tires on 19-inch front and 20-inch rear alloy wheels, and a subtle but functional drop-down character line that increases the scale of the door glass. Heavily stylized front and rear fascias incorporate equally distinctive LED lamp treatments. However, it’s the Kabura’s dramatic windshield that puts it quite literally over the top. Extending all the way back to the B-pillar, this soaring one-piece canopy was intended “to bring the outside in,” a job it performs with panoramic intensity.

To more fully exploit that feeling of spaciousness, the Kabura’s primary color palette and futuristic seat design also emphasize lightness. The former provides tasteful resolution to a “fire and ice” exterior/interior motif that was also part of the original design thinking. The latter explores new ideas in trimming mass with an eye toward keeping curb weight of any production variant under a rumored 2500-pound bogey.

There’s a fair bit of innovation in the materials, as well, courtesy of a partnership with Sustainable Solutions Inc. SSI specializes in transforming high-quality postindustrial waste–notably leather and rubber–into equally high-quality new-tech alternatives. Several of the Kabura’s interior surfaces are covered in a “regenerated” leather product made from 100-percent post-industrial waste trim, a medium that offers virtually all the touch and feel characteristics of the original hide but at a significantly lower cost. The durable substrate that lines its cargo area was created in a similar manner, using reground and reprocessed scrap rubber.

People zones for the Kabura’s unique “3+1” cabin configuration are divided into two distinct environments: one for the driver, the other for passengers. Defining the command seat is a large piano-black trim element that creates a de facto cockpit where analog gauges are matched with switchable electronic displays. An F1-style multifunction steering wheel with digital speed readout reprises the design theme of the Kabura’s wheels, while just beyond the substantial aluminum shift lever you’ll find the next big must-have feature, an integrated iPod dock.

Even more revolutionary design thinking lies across the center tunnel. The Kabura’s recontoured cutaway dash eliminates the glovebox, buying enough free space in the process to position the front bucket roughly six inches ahead of where it would normally be. This unconventional approach generates sufficient rear legroom to make tandem seating for two modestly scaled adults a realistic possibility. Access to the aft quarters is facilitated by a nifty pocket door that slips into the right rear-quarter panel–another idea currently being explored for possible use in future Mazdas–while the forward portion of the back glass flips up like a spoiler to gain a bit of extra headroom and improve cabin ventilation. Although the jump seat behind the driver remains little more than glorified package space, all three perches fold flat, allowing a bounty of active-lifestyle kit to be loaded into the rear bay via a side-hinged glass hatch.

Concepts being what they are, all of our wheel time was spent cruising at a fairly leisurely pace. But even at this prototype stage, the MX-5’s lusty twin-cam four and slick six-speed gearbox are suitable motivators, the basic structure solid, and the packaging plausible, if not perfect. Driving–and listening–between the lines further reinforced our belief that adding an affordable sport coupe with this kind of spirit and style to Mazda’s U.S. lineup is an idea supported by friends in some very high corporate places.

Under ideal circumstances, a production version of this engaging newcomer could arrive by 2008. Despite initial talk about dropping a rotary engine under the hood and moving the vehicle upmarket as the next RX-7, the most likely scenario points to creating a stand-alone model that uses the existing mechanicals and slots in under the MX-5, perhaps wearing an MX-3 badge. With the priciest bits of platform engineering complete, the key challenge involves replacing several of the Kabura’s costlier signature elements with more affordable alternatives that still remain true to its core values and distinctive sense of style.

Design Brief: Franz Von HolzhausenAt age 37, Franz von Holzhausen already stands as one of the brightest young stars in today’s auto design universe. While claiming that his mother has a photo of him drawing his first car at age two, von Holzhausen credits his father, a product and graphic designer, with providing the strongest encouragement to pursue a career in that specific creative arena.

After studying industrial design at Syracuse University, the Connecticut native enrolled at the Art Center College of Design, in Pasadena, California, honing his auto-specific skills at both the main campus and at its international branch in Switzerland. Internships at Volkswagen and Ford were followed by an eight-year stint at VW, where he worked with J Mays on the New Beetle and with Freeman Thomas on the Audi TT. Next stop was General Motors. There, his five-year tour of duty culminated in the Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky, exceptional styling statements that opened the door to his new post at Mazda. He speaks as admiringly of fashion icons like Tom Ford and Miuccia Prada as of automotive legends like Giorgetto Giugiaro and corporate boss J Mays.

He pauses only momentarily when asked what separates good designers from great ones: “A keen sense of proportion–and knowing when to lift the brush.”